Have you given up on getting rid of your sweet tooth?

You might think that the process of change is all about will power, and your supply of that precious commodity is not up to the task. But the process of change is not just about bare-knuckled will power; it’s about relentless persistence in the direction you want to go with your strategy in hand.

Day 16 of The Journey Beyond Sugar has this to say:
There are no straight lines in nature.

Success and progress are not a straight line. We imagine it to be that way, but that’s a lie.

It may seem as though you are constantly going in circles, but look again. It’s probably spirals. Just like those of the nautilus shell, the seed head of a sunflower, the unfurling of a fiddlehead fern, the corkscrew flight pattern of a hawk riding a summer thermal or the whorl of a galaxy.

We come back time and again to certain themes, moments and learning, and so often think, “Oh no, this again.” But look closer. Note the progress you have made.

Often when we revisit our “issues,” we don’t realize at first that we have reached a higher level of integration. We imagine straight lines, but there are no straight lines in nature. We imagine overnight success and the one-and-done intervention, but those are usually one moment toward the end of a process that has been long unfolding.

Not circles — spirals. Note your progress!

Give up on one-and-done. Give up on “I’ll get this one thing fixed and then everything will be smooth from this moment onward.” Another turn always comes on a spiral – that is the nature of the form. The spiral presents another opportunity to make the choice that moves us in the direction we have chosen.

Try This Twelve-Minute Writing Practice:
How is the issue in front of you in this moment different from what it was a year ago? A month ago? What progress or changes have you made that you usually discount instead of embrace?
Write it down and see your progress on paper.

Ready to get some traction on changing your relationship with sugar?
Listen into this podcast that pulls back the curtain on the Journey Beyond Sugar and gives you the process transforming your relationship with sugar!

There is a delightful response that the famous cellist Pablo Casals gave when asked why he continued to practice when he was already in his 90’s.